With the organization of Meet the Professor, the two universities aim to promote equal opportunities and access to science.
When children think of a scientist, they often imagine a chemist in a lab coat. Meet the Professor breaks this stereotype by bringing scientists from a variety of disciplines into the classroom. This way, children are introduced to, among others, a scholar who studies the Quran (Pieter Coppens), a researcher who developed an educational programming language (Felienne Hermans), and a scientist who travels to the polar regions to study permafrost (Jorien Vonk).
“Children who are introduced to science today can ask the questions tomorrow that help move us forward. Their curiosity is our future. Meet the Professor is a wonderful way to spark that curiosity and show that science is something you can be a part of yourself,” says Jeroen Geurts, rector magnificus of VU Amsterdam.
This edition of Meet the Professor is part of the Amsterdam Future Ten Days, celebrating Amsterdam’s 750th anniversary. During the joint departure event on the VU campus, the participating scientists reflect on the future: what does university research mean for today's children, for their adult lives in 2050, and for their lives in 2075, when they themselves will be approaching senior age?
Learning what science is in a playful way
Before the guest lesson, the Amsterdam Science Hub provides schools with teaching materials to properly prepare students. In a playful manner, they discuss what science is, what scientists do, and what terminology their guest lecturer might use. The students also come up with their own research questions and sketch their image of what a scientist looks like.
“Because the students are prepared for the guest lesson, a valuable dialogue arises where the children can contribute their perspective on the research questions,” says initiator Katinka van der Kooi, who conducts research at VU on human motor learning and motivation.
During the guest lesson, the scientists interactively explain their field and daily work with the students, and afterwards, the scientists exchange experiences with each other.
Becoming a researcher yourself
The goal is for students to recognize some of their own traits in the scientist and develop an interest in conducting research themselves. According to the organizers, meeting a scientist can also help promote social equality.
“Not everyone is exposed to science equally at home,” says one of the organizers, Silke Drieman from the University of Amsterdam. “This way, we hope to foster support for science and build trust in scientific knowledge.”
Participating Scientists from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam:
- Prof. Dr. Felienne Hermans, Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences – Learning to program
- Prof. Dr. Mirjam Pijnappels, Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences – Aging & mobility
- Prof. Dr. Nienke van Atteveldt, Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences – Mindset
- Dr. Teatske Altenburg, Amsterdam UMC – Physical activity
- Dr. Alexa Laheij, ACTA – Preventive dentistry
- Prof. Dr. Jeroen de Ridder, School of Humanities – Epistemology
- Dr. Pieter Coppens, School of Humanities – Islamic Studies
- Prof. Dr. Sandjai Bhulai, Faculty of Science – Data science
- Prof. Dr. Jorien Vonk, Faculty of Science – Permafrost
- Prof. Dr. Frank van Harmelen, Faculty of Science – Computer Science / AI
- Dr. Mr. Tim Bleeker, Faculty of Law – Climate law